Concrete mixing and spreading machine



March 24, 1925.

J. H. PETERS CONCRETE MIXING AND SPREADING MACHINE v Filed Jan. 27. 1923 5 Sheets-Sheet 1 [MVP/7Z5 March 24, 1925.

. 1,530,576 J. H. PETERS CONCRETE MIXING AND SPREADING MACHINE Filed Jan. 27, 1923 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 Marqzh 24, 1925. 1,530,576

J. H. PETERS CONCRETE MIXING AND SPREADING MACHINE Filed Jan. 27 1923 5 Sheets-Sheet 3 March 24, .1925.

J. H. PETERS CONCRETE MIXING AND SPREADING MACHINE heets-Sheet 4 March 24,1925. 1,530,576

J. H. PETERS CONCRETE MIXING AND SPREADING MACHINE Filed Jan. 27. 1923 5 Shets-Sheet s stain... 24, 1925. I

UNITED STATES 1,530,576 PATENT OFFICE.

JOHN HENRY PETERS, OF DARIiINGI-IUR-ST, NEAR SYDNEY, NEW SOUTH WALES, AUSTRALIA.

CONCRETE, MIXING AND srannnme MACHINE.

application filed January 27, 1923. Serial No. 615,254.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that 1, JOHN HENRY PETERS, subject'of the King of Great Britain and Ireland, residing at Rosebank Avenue, Darlinghurst, near Sydney, in the county of Cumberland and State of New South 'Wales, Australia, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Concrete Mixing and Spreading Machines, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to machines-for mixing and spreading concrete, and it has been particularly devised for the purpose of spreading the mixed concrete on prepared road beds to pave the same with a minimum of manual labour. It is usable also for laying concrete floors of large area, for paving water channels and for moulding concrete sleepers, posts, and lintels in moulds or in partitioned moulds which are placed below it. The machine comprises a chassis or frame which for road and floor laying purposes is mounted on wheels adapted to run on a temporary track consisting of rails laid at either side of the surfaceto be paved, a concrete mixer mounted on said chassis, and a spreader or screed for spreading and strickling concrete which is gravitationally deposited directly from the pan on to a road bed or pavement or into moulds set below the machine. The machine includes an assembly of mechanical devices for operating mixing rake-spades in the. pan, for adjusting said spades for various purposes, for traversing the screed, and optionally for propelling the chassis, appropriate controls being provided to enable the operator to manually command these several operations. Accessory devices consist in mechanism for manipulating the water supply, for controlling the motive power unit which is installed on the chassis, and for other purposes incidental to the operation of the machine in practice. The mixing pan and its parts include features which are of substantial practical value for the making of concrete otherwise than for paving purposes, and it is to be understood, therefore, that the mixing pan and its equipment is to be regarded asa separable unit of the complete apparatus which may be installed in connection with other apparatus, or used without other apparatus for the purpose of producing a concrete mixture for building and other operations.

In the accompanying drawings,-

Fig. 1 is a top plan of the machine; I

Fig. 2 is a rear end elevation of the machine with the finished crowned road bed indicated in a dotted line;

Fig. 3 is a transverse section looking rearward 0n the line 3 -3 Fig. 1

Fig. 4 is a longitudinal section on the line H Fig. 1;

Fig. 5 is a plan view of one of the filling; hoppers as it appears when canted as sug' gested in Fig. 3;

Fig. 6 is an elevational view showing, the pan with a tilting mounting which is provided for the purpose of enabling it to be set horizontally to ensure satisfactory operation when the machine is working on a grade; this View is taken on the'line 6-6 Fig. 7 is a fragmentary detail view on enlarged scale explanatory of trip mechanism for reversing the screed movement, and showing also the method of mounting the screed on a beam frame across one end of the machine; I

Fig. 8 is an end elevational view correspending with Fig. 7;

surface of a Fig. '9 is 'a fragmentary perspective view explanatory of the detail of the mechanism for setting and tilting the mixing rakespades which operate in the pan; and

Figs. 10 and 11 are fragmentary detail views of portions of certain of: the parts which are shown also in Fig. 9.

The chassis 20 is a frame structure of sectional steel, gusset stayed at various points to stiffen it, and mounted on two axles 21-21 which are fitted with wheels 22, which may be flanged wheels as shown adapted to run on rails 23 or may be plain faced Wheels adapted to run on a: flat trackway. On the forward part of the chassis, an internal combustion engine 24 is mounted; this engine, for which an electric motor may be substituted when the conditions of use so permit, supplies the necessary motive pow er for all the operations of the machine including optionally the progressive movement of the chassis 20 along the rails 23 .or other track. A drive connection for moving the chassis is not shown in the drawing. An alternative drive device consisting of a crank handle 25 is shown which operates through a worm 26011. a worm wheel 27 keyed to the forward axle 21. When power drive is required the shaft 32 is geared to the forward axle 21. The main shaft 28 of the motor transmits drive through a worm and worm wheel 29 to a jack shaft 30 which is geared 'by a chain 31 working over drive sprockets to a fore-and-aft shaft 32. A dog clutch 33 on the shaft 32 is engageable with a 'bevel pinion 34 which is in gear with a bevel-pinion 35 keyed on a countershaft 36 running transversely of the machine. A

- spur wheel 37 is keyed to the same shaft 36,

and with this spur wheel 37 a spur pinion 38 is geared, said pinion being keyed on a hand crank shaft 39 to the squared end 40 of which a hand crank may be fitted when required. 0n the inner' end of the shaft 36 is keyed a. bevel pinion 42 housed in a bearing casing 43 fixed on the chassis. lVith this pinion 42 a bevel wheel 44 is in gear; this bevel pinion is keyed on a vertical spindle 45 which passes up through the circular central bottom plate 46 on the base of the pan 41, a conical box 47 being fitted to protect the spindle 45 and prevent concrete or slop finding its way into the footstep or bearing journals. On the top end of the shaft 45 sweep arms 48 are fixed. The ring wall 49 of the pan is supported by trunnions 7 0 on the chassis. The annular bottom space between the centre-bottom plate 46 of the pan and its walls 49 is filled with a floor plate 50 covered with a false floor plate 51; the latter may be in sections fixed in so that they may be readil removed for replacement when worn. X single floor plate may be used instead of the double plates 50-51, but it is preferred to use the false. flooring 1n 7 order to minimize cost of replacement.

Another dog clutch 52 is fitted near the rear end of the shaft 32; this dog clutch is engageable with its counterpart member 53 which is freely rotatable on the shaft 32 when the clutch is disengaged. The member 53 is fixed to a sprocket wheel 54 which is geared by a chain 55 to another sprocket 56 on a jackvshaft 57; this jack shaft is mounted in bearings 58 on the frame, and it carries a sprocketpinion 59 over which the screed chain 60 runs. At the other side of the machine the screed chain 60 runs over an idle sprocket 61. 62 and 63 are housing boxes which protect the projecting gears.

'65 is a water tank which is mounted on stanchions 66 upstanding from the frame above the top level of the pan sides 49. A water delivery service 67 from the tank is controlled by a hand valve 68. The pipe 67 is brought round to the side of the structure and returned over. the middle of the pan, its incoming portion 69, which is radial to the pan, is perforated to deliver a spray of water over the material contained in the pan during the mixing operation. The perforations are large and set closely over the middle portion of the pan in order that the dry material which is dumped into that portion of the pan will be rapidly wetted down and the mixing of it thus facilitated. The pan trunnions 70 are arranged to permit the pan to be tipped forwardly or rearwardly in fore-and-aft direction so that it may be sweep the mixture in the pan towards its periphery, and those (74) on the other arm being angularly pitched to sweep the mixture inward toward the centre of the pan. The outward pitched drivin rake-spades 7 5 are set at a faster pitch tian the rake: spades 74 in order that they will move the mixture more rapidly than the inward pitched rake-spades 74, thereby to ensure delivery of mixed concrete through the soup per chute 76 which depends fromthe pan bottom and is arranged to deposit the delivered mixture on the road bed or into moulds or on a prepared surface below the machine in the track of movement of the screed blade 77. The rake-spades are carried on independent fioating arms 79. They are each fitted on a helve 80 by. two bolts one of which passes through a slotted hole 81 to bolts 84 which pass through the slots 85 in said quadrants. Each of the arms 79 has its downward motion limited by an adjustable check screw 87 which passes through a lug 88 on a T shoulder 89 which carries the inner end of the arm 79 rotatably on one of the sweep arms 48.

The sweep arms 48 may be tubular as shown or they may be solid. They are sheathed with tubes 90 which are rotatable on them; the sheath tubes 90 extend up to fixed collars 97, which are provided with lugs 96 in which a key 98 may be, inserted for a On eac end of both arms 48 end, collars 93 are fixed. Upon these end collars check beams 92 are mounted. The shoulder Ts 89 of thefloating arms 79 are rotatable on the sleeves-90 so that these arms may be raised and lowered. Ahand lever 94 extends from a collar 95 which is mounted for rotation urpose hereinafter to be described.

on each tube 90, and a pin 99 offset from the side of this lever carrles a pawl 100 which is engageable-with detent teeth on a collar 101 which is keyed to the tube 90. Upon the beam 92 a swinging check 106 is provided to co-act with each of the adjusting stop screws 87. When any one of the arms 79 is lifted the check 106 may be swung in behind the point of the adjusting screw 87 so as to hold the arm tipped up-shghtly as shown in Fig. 10, or when so required tipped up at a steep angle as shown in Fig. 11, thereby to hold the rake-spade on the end of it clear above the material in the pan. From each of the detent collars 101 a lever arm 102 extends downwardly; these arms carry between them a pull bar 103 which may be tubular as shown. Tension springs 104 connect the bar 103 with the movable lugs 105. which are fixed to the floating arms 79. The springs 104 function to pull the arms 79 downward so as to hold the rake spades 74 in the mixing mass of concrete. To facilitate the lifting of the arms 79 to clear the rake spades from the mixing mass, the tension on the springs 104 must be released. Tension is applied to the springs 104 by engaging the pawl 1.00 with the detents on the collar 101 and then rotating the collar by means 'of the lever arm 94 thereby to move the pull bar 103. The lever arm 94 is then locked in the tensioned position by inserting the check key 98 in t 1e hole inthc lug 96. IVhen the lever 94 is freed the detent collar 101' is no longer held, and it rotates and allows the bar 103 to move forwardly to release the tension of the springs 104. It is to be understood that a separate spring pull-attachment maybe provided foreach oneof the arms 79 so as to make the adjustment for each of them independent. The arrangement described and indicated in the draw-' ings provides for the control of the gang of three arms bya pair of levers 94 one located at either end of the three arm assembly. In the case of independent control of the several arms in the gang, the tail of each spring 104 is connected directly to the arm 102 on the detent collar 101, associated with its particular arm or alternatively the lever and detent device may be omitted and the bracket arm 102 may be fixed directly on the sweep arm 48. and tensioning of the spring 104 then effected by moving the clam collar 105 along the floating arm 79 and xing it on said arm when its position has been so adjusted.

In the full down position of the rake spades the stop screw 87 contacts directly with the back of the beam 92. The bottom edges of the spades are then just clear of the pan floor. In the partially raised position of the rake-spades the stop screw 87 bears on the flat of the swinging stop 106, and when they are fully lifted so that they set clear above the material in the pan the stop screw 87 is engaged against the knob 107 on the swinging lug as shown in Fig. 11.

By means of the adjusting mechanisms which have been described, the rake-spades and the outermost of theinsweeping spades 74 is located near the pan wall to ensure that concrete will not bank up around the wall and remain there. The direction of movement of the rake-spades is indicated by arrows.

The screed blade 77 operates transversely under the chassis frame. It traverses over the road bed with an adjusted clearance depending upon the thicknessof concrete paving to be laid. This adjustment is effected by laying the rails 23 to a predetermined height above the prepared road or paving bed 110; 111 represents a paving layer of concrete on which the screed has operated. The steel plate screed blade 77 is mounted in cheeks 112 which are hung on a wrist pin 113 fixed in the screed carriage 114.

Pivot lugs 115 on said carriage take be-' hind stops 116 on the'screed blade 77. The pivot lugs 115 are forked as shown at 130, and a clearance notch 131 is cut in the top edge of the screed plate 77 to allow it to swing laterally freely when the pivot lugs 115 are canted outward to the clearance position shown in Fig. 8. The lugs 115 are moved by a throw bar 132 which extends across the machine and is formed with cranked ends pivotally mounted in fixed bearings 133; one end of it is extended through one of the bearings 133 and is fitted with a hand lever 134. WVhen the hand lever 134 is thrown to bring the lugs 115 to erect position as shown in Fig. 4, the screed blade 77 is held erect. Vhe'n the hand lever 134 is thrown oppositely to cant the pivot lugs 115 to the free position shown in Fig. 8, the screed blade 77 is freed to swing on its wrist pin 113 so that it may trail across the paving and not operate to strickle the paving as whenit is held erect in the Fig. 4 position. This freedom to trail is necessary to enable the workmen to control the distribution of the concrete to bring it toward one side or other of the bed to procure evenness in the work. The screed carriage 114 runs on a beam guide 118; guide wheel runners 119 working between the flanges of the beam 118 being fitted to minimize friction. The guide beam 118 is curved or straight according to the finish line of the work, and it is mounted on the frame by bolts passing through slotted holes, in order that it, may be adjusted with one end of it higher than the other to facilitate the paving of crowned roads in two courses, pitched respectively to the two sides of the i roadway.

A slotted extensionmember 120 on the screed carriage 114 carries in the slot in it two sprocket wheels 121 and 122. To the sides of these sprocket wheels are fixed detent check wheels 123124, the direction of the toothing in these detents being opposite. The continuous chain 60 through which motion is transmitted to the screed carriage, runs always in one direction, as indicated by the arrow (Fig. 7 Upon the bracket extension 120 a striker arm 125 is mounted on a pivot 126. This striker is fitted with pawl arms 127 and 128, which respectively engage the detent wheels 123 and 12-1. The stem of the striker 125 is embraced by a fork 140 pivotally carried at 126 on the member 120. This fork also engages a throw bar 141 extending across the machine, cranked at its ends, and mounted' 'lin end bearings 142 through one of which 'it is extended, a hand lever 143 being fitted on the extended end. When the hand lever 143 is thrown in one direction to bring the fork 140 downward, the striker is moved to the position shown in Fig. 7,'in which position its pawl 127 engages the detent 123 and its pawl 128 is disengaged from the detent 124. The chain 60, which is guided under the idle rollers 150 on the top'of the carriage extension 120, then operates to drag the carriage towards the left. so moving the screed blade towards the left. At the end of the left traverse movement, the bent portion 129 of the arm 125 encounters a stop 137 (see Fig. 2), which forcibly throws the striker arm 125 and releases the I pawl 127 and engages the pawl 128 with the detent check wheel 124, so preventing overrunning and breakages, and causing the carriage to be traversed to the ri ht carrying the screed with it. Similar. at the end of the right hand movement the striker.

125 is automatically reversed by contacting with another fixed stop 138 and the carriage is then caused to move from right to left. An alternating traverse movement of the carriage and screed is thus obtained from the uni-directional movement of the chain 60, and the concrete which is deposited on the road bed through the scupper chute 76 from the pan is spread across the road bed or on a prepared surface or in moulds set under the machine and is strickled to a smooth finish.

The pan is charged intermittently through two tilting hoppers 1G0161. Two hoppers are fitted to enable loading to be carried on chine.

simultaneously from either side of the ma- A proportioned charge of Portland cement, sand, and stone ag gate is thrown on to the low side. of eit ier hopper, and when thus loaded the hopper is canted over to reverse position, whereupon the charge slides down the hopper floor and passes through the hopper scupper 162 onto the distributor 181 over the center of the pan, whence it falls dis rsed into the pan. It is to be understoo however, thatthe pan maybe charged by conveyors of mechanical or pneumatic type, eitherintermittently or continuously. The water flow through the pipe 69 is regulated according to the rate of loading so as to procure proper wetness of the mixture which is being produced in the pan. As the rake-spades are revolved around the pan the mass is thoroughly mixed, alternate inward and outward sweeping motion being applied to it by means of the rake-spades, with a tendency for the mixed material to heap up towards the edge of the an. As the rakespades pass over the ip of the scupper chute 7 6 they sweep the mixed concrete therethrough and it falls by gravity on to the prepared surface or mould and is spread and strickled as the machine is. progressed forwardly along its track.

This machine constitutes an economical equipment for the building of concrete roads inasmuch as a minimum of supervision and labour is required, and uniform work is produced at a rapid rate. As the diameter of, the pan-will correspond substantially with the dimensions of the machine-in other words will correspond with the width of paved track to be laida machine of ap ropriate size will effect the paving of su stantially uniform lengths of road irrespective of width in unit time. The (preparation of the road bed iseffecte by any known apparatus or method. When concrete paving-has been laid and strickled by this machine it is allowed to set and season for a period of 21 days or more, and if desired, may, before being used for traffic, be surfaced with a wash of bituminous material.

It will be understood that the prepared road bed may be artially paved with loose sets or stones bef dre the machine is passed over it to fill it and to surface it with concrete.

YVhat I claim as my invention and desire to secure by Letters Patent is 1. Apparatus for the purpose set forth, comprising a wheeled chassis, a beam guide mounted transversely on said chassis, a carriage mounted on said guide and traversible thereon, a screed pendularly hung across said carriage and adapted to spread and striekle concrete delivered on to a prepared surface, shaft, clutch, and control gearing for traversing said screed carriage, a lock for holding said screed in a rigid vertical position, means for releasin said lock to permit the screed to trail in either direction, and means for reversing the direction of the traversing movement of the screed carriage.

2. In apparatus accordin to claim 1, means for locking and releasing the screed, said means consisting of forked lugs pivotally mounted on the carriage across which said screed is pendularly hung, a bar with cranked ends extending across the chassis and adapted to throw said lugs in one direction to lock the screed in a rigid vertical position and in the opposite direction to release the screed to trail in either direction. i

-3. In apparatus according to claim 1, means for traversing the screed carriage, said means consisting of a flanged beam guide mounted transversely on the chassis, wheels mounted on said carriage and running between the flanges of said guide, a continuous chain running over sprockets mounted at opposite sides of the chassis, shaft, clutch and control gearing for driving said sprockets, two sprocket wheels mounted one above the other in said carriage and engaging said chain, oppositely toothed detents fixed to the sides of said sprocket wheels, and means including a striker for alternately engaging the carriage with the upper and lower run of the said chain for the purpose of imparting alternating traversing movement to the carriage.

4. In apparatus according to claim 1, means for reversing the direction of the traversing movement of the screed carriage,

said means comprising a flanged beam guide mounted transversely on the chassis, whee-ls mounted on said carriage and running between the flanges of said guide, a continuous chain running on sprockets mounted at opposite sides of the chassis, shaft, clutch and control gearing for driving said sprockets, two sprocket wheels mounted one above the other in the carriage and engaging said chain, oppositely toothed detents fixed to the sides of said sprocket wheels, a striker pivotally mounted on the carriage, pawl arms fixed on said striker and adapted to engage the upper" and lower Idetent respectively, a fork integral with said striker, a bar with cranked ends extending across the chassis and engageable by said fork, means for rocking said bar and said fork so that engagement and disengagement of the pawl arms with the opposing de'tents is alternated, and the screed carriage movement is reversed.

5. In apparatus according to claim 1, means for automatically reversing the direction of the traversing movement of the screed carriage, said means comprising a flanged beam guide mounted transversely on the chassis, wheels mounted on said carriage and running between the flanges of said guide, a continuous chain runnin on sprockets mounted at opposite sides 0 the chassis, shaft, clutch and control gearing for driving said sprockets, two sprocket wheels mounted one above the other in the carriage, and engaging said chain, oppositely toothed detents fixed to the sides of said sprocket wheels, a striker pivotally mounted on the carriage, pawl arms fixed on said striker and adapted to engage the upper and lower detent respectively, a fork integral with said striker, fixed stops at opposite sides of the chassis engageable with the striker at the limit of themovementof the carriage in either direction and ada ted to automatically reverse the position 0 the said striker and said pawl arms in relation to the upper and lower detent in the screed carriage. y

In testimony whereof I afiix my si ature.

J OHN HENRY PET RS. 

